Unlikely Friendship
by Riddikulus-Grin
Summary: Right after the events of Rise From The Ashes, Ema meets a mysterious, handsom boy on a park bench. His name is Klavier Gavin - an they become fast friends. But what happens when their new found friendship is challenged?


**Title: Unlikely Friendship  
Genre: Friendship/General  
Pairings: Everybody's favourite... Klema!  
Rating: K**

**I didn't mean for this to be as long as it turned out, but I'm really happy with it. I guess it could be a parallel universe - but who knows? Maybe Ema and Klavier did meet right after Rise From the Ashes? Please review - it's only fair when I keep you all so well-fed with oneshots. **

* * *

I met him for the first time on a park bench. It was getting dark, right after the end of Lana's case. He spotted me sitting there, crying. He came over and sat down on the bench.

"Fraulein, what's the matter?"

"Nothing." I sniffed, turning my back of the mysterious boy to stop him seeing my red nose and streaming eyes.

"Something's up. Want to talk about it?"

"No." I said a little more firmly. We sat in silence for a bit. I turned to look at him.

"You're Lana Skye's sister." He stated. I looked up, I was surprised he knew. "I've seen you in the court lobby." He said as a way of explanation. "My brother's a defence attorney - Kristoph Gavin - he's the best there is, ja?" I sniffed.

"Not true." I said. "Mr. Wright's the best."

"And why might that be?" the boy asked, smiling. I gulped. I didn't want to get into this - it would be stupid to tell a boy I'd only just met about what had just happened. He probably wouldn't care, anyway. The boy smiled again. He had a cute smile, I decided. His teeth where pearly white, you could tell, even in the mid-dark. He didn't ask again when I had no answer.

The silence overtook us again. I was absorbed in my own thoughts, he was just looking at me, watching my every movement. I brushed my fringe out of my eyes and straightened my glasses self consciously. He chuckled. A soft, beautiful sound.

I broke the silence. "What's the time?" I asked, looking at him.

"Do I look like I have a watch?" he asked. I looked - I hadn't really noticed his clothes before now, I'd been absorbed in his face. He had a purple jacket and black jeans, verging on the point of skinnies. He wore a lot of jewellery for a boy - mostly rings, I noticed. He had more on than me, that's for sure. I checked his wrist - no watch.

"You have a mobile don't you?" I asked, questioningly.

"Ja," He said wistfully, "But I keep it on German time, to remind me of home."

"Well, what's the time in German, then?" I asked, trying not to get impatient. He told me, and I quickly worked out our time. "So it's half-eight then. I've got to get home."

"Oh," he said sadly. "Auf wiedisen, Fraulein." I smiled back, then jumped up and hurried back home.

___

I met him for a second time in the court lobby. I was waiting for Lana to come out of a trial, and he walked in.

I looked up, surprised when he entered. There was no reason for him to be there. "Shouldn't you be in the defendant's lounge?" I asked him.

"Ja, but I spotted you here, all alone, so I've decided to join you. Snack?" he asked, holding the bag of fried dough cakes in front of my face.

I smiled, "Just one." They tasted fantastic. I was instantly in love. "Wow!" I said once I swallowed. "What are they?" He chuckled again.

"Snackoos. You can have them, I don't really like them." He handed me the bag. It took all my restraint not to eat them all there and then. I took one more and put the bag in my satchel.

"What's your name?" the boy asked suddenly.

"Ema," I said, taken aback by his abruptness.

"I'm Klavier." He smiled. "Klavier Gavin, rock god and prosecutor to be." I stifled a snort. He seemed a bit full of himself. We sat in silence, but it was not similar to the silence we shared on the bench. This was more awkward, and Klavier seemed on the verge of saying something.

"Erm... Ema?"

"Yes?" I asked, looking straight at him.

"Sorry." He said, wincing "I don't like calling you that. How about I stick to Fraulein?"

"I'd prefer not." I said irritably.

"Well, Fraulein, may I have your phone number?" he asked, ignoring my answer. I blinked.

"Why?" I asked suspiciously.

"So we can stay on contact!" Said Klavier as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. I suppose it was.

"Fine." I said, reciting my mobile number - he wasn't getting the home phone. He gave me his, and said he would call me so we could meet up.

"Good!" he said, smiling at me.

Just then Lana arrived to take me home. She spotted the glimmerous boy sitting next to me and raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

As we were walking back she raised the subject."Was that Defence Attorney Gavin's younger brother you were talking to in there?" I nodded. "They look exactly the same, but with completely different styles!" I shrugged. I didn't know - I'd never seen Kristoph Gavin. "Why were you talking?" she asked, her brow furrowed. I didn't see why.

"We met in the park once." I told her - no need to mention I had been crying over SL-9 at the time. "Why so interested?"

"That boy has a crush on you." She told me simply.

"Yeah, as if!" I laughed. "He's just being nice because he knows you're my sister."

"Do you like him?"

"He's alright."

"Do you want to see him again?"

"I guess I'm going to. We swapped numbers, so if he calls, he calls. I can't say no!"

"No, but do you _want_ to?"

"I guess...?" I asked, not sure why she was cross-examining me.

"Aww... my little sister has a crush!" She cooed

"What? NO!"I didn't have a crush on that glimmer-boy. He was being kind because he met me at a vulnerable time, and I didn't have the guts to tell him to shove off. "I don't like him that way!"

Lana laughed. I could tell she didn't believe me.

"It's true!" I protested.

She was still unconvinced.

"Oh come on, Lana! I can have friends-who-are-boys without having a crush on them, you know!" I said, playfully flicking one of my snacks at her. As it turned out my aim was terrible. It went right past her and fell to the floor a little way away. I was going to have to work on that - the snackoos made excellent catapults. She laughed again, making me annoyed enough to refuse to talk to her for the rest of the journey home.

___

The third meeting was a planned one. The very next day was a Saturday, and I got a text from his number, asking if I'd like to go bowling with him that evening. I planned to say no, but Lana also saw the text, and insisted I had to go.

I just wanted to go in my favourite plaited skirt and my lab coat, but Lana had other ideas, insisting I wore my new jeans and a pale pink top she bought me that I thought I'd never have to wear. I still got away with my luminol testing glasses and lab coat though, partly because Lana didn't notice until it was too late, and we were already in the car on our way there.

Klavier had told me he would be waiting at the entrance. When I spotted him I was filled with last-minute nerves, and didn't want to get out of the car. Lana practically shoved me out, saying she'd be back to back me up at half-eight. It was six already, and I had no idea how I was going to spend that much time with a boy I'd only ever had two conversations with, and from what I'd seen of him was an obnoxious, glimmerous fop.

"Fraulein, you look lovely!" he exclaimed when he saw me. He rushed to mew me when the car pulled away, and I could have sworn I saw Lana wink at me from behind the wheel.

"So?" I said harshly. I didn't know why I was suddenly so annoyed - the glimmer-boy did that to me.

"You know you look lovely then?" he laughed.

"What - No! I just...." _thank you big mouth_ I told myself, cramming a snackoo in. _You made me seem big-headed too._

"Come on." He said, braking the silence that had sprung up between us. "I trust you know how to play?"

As it turned out, I did. I achieved three strikes in the time we played, and he got none. Naturally, I won.

We went for ice cream at the little food counter afterwards. I was surprised when he pointed out that it was 8:45 and Lana would be waiting - I had been having a great time and I'd completely forgotten the time.

"Oh - I should really go!" I said, jumping up.

"Fraulein, I'll escort you out." He said, taking my hand.

"No thank you!" I said, yanking my hand from his grasp. "Let's just go, shall we?"

Lana was full of questions I couldn't be bothered to answer when I said goodbye to Klavier and got into the car.

"Was it fun?"

"Yeah."

"Did you win?"

"Uh-huh."

"What did you talk about?"

"Stuff."

"Enough with the single-syllable answers, Ema!" she said, exasperated.

"'Uh-huh' isn't a single syllable!" I pointed out.

"Ok, smart alec!" She laughed. "You know what I mean! Now I want a play-by-play account of everything that happened for that comment!"

"Ok." I began. I took a deep breath. "Well..."

---

Soon I lost count of how many times I saw him. I saw him so often to go places together I lost count. Klavier was always the one to arrange the meetings - they happened every Saturday morning, without fail. Lana called it young love - I called it annoyingly persistent.

I had to admit, despite his flirty nature and huge ego, I did enjoy meeting up with him - not only because he always demanded he paid for our activities. He was good company. Despite what Lana said I was very much not in love with him. I didn't plan to get a crush any time soon. The one boyfriend I had ever had was a bit of a jerk, and I dumped him when I found out he was only dating me so he could copy my science homework. No, I very much didn't have a crush on Klavier.

A few months passed and we became great friends. It didn't matter that he got on my nerves, he didn't give up. He laughed when I pinged my snacks at him even when they got him right on the forehead (which I practised doing until I was perfect, and then some more). I had to admit, I was starting to think of him as one of my best friends, so I decided for once I should be the one to arrange what we would do that Saturday.

_U doing anything 2day? Want 2 meet up park 4 ice cream + shopping? _I texted him.

The reply was almost instant. _Can't. Busy._

That annoyed me more than it really should, for some reason. We always met up and I was annoyed with him for blowing me off. I decided I would go anyway - I needed a new notebook. I told Lana I was going out for a bit, and she didn't ask questions, assuming it was me going out to meet Klavier for our regular routine.

I wondered through the park - it was a hot day and I was in the mood for something sweet and tasty to cool me down. Like a lemon ice lolly. I calculated I had enough change in my purse to buy one and still have enough for a cheap reporter's notepad, so I wondered over to the edge of the park where the ice cream van was parked.

There was a line, but I didn't care. Instead I looked around the park, but I wasn't paying attention - I was thinking about the glimmer-boy blowing me off like that. It wasn't a date, and I knew I had no reason to be annoyed. There were plenty of reasons for him to be busy. He could have lots of homework to catch up on, but I knew that wouldn't stop him - he'd not done his homework loads of times before to hang out with me, and then he'd text or call me on Monday moaning about how his teacher didn't believe that it was swallowed by a rhino or whatever. I guessed that maybe his brother was doing something with him. But didn't he say that his brother was completely work-based, and never had time to hang out?

I shook my head and sighed. It was no use pointing out contradictions in my own excuses. I'd paid too much attention to Mr. Wright when he was in court. I kept on cross-examining my own thought stream.

"What is it you're after?" said a bored voice, snapping me back to reality.

"Oh, one lemon ice lolly please." I said, handing over the money as he handed me my frozen good. I licked it idly as I went to sit down on the park bench I usually shared with Klavier, but there was two people already sitting on it. One of them took the hand of the other, and whispered something in her ear. A purple-clad one of them with platinum-blonde hair and pearly-white teeth. I was stunned when I realised I recognised the couple. It was Klavier, obviously, but the girl he was with was my lab partner, Esme, who I didn't get on with.

He had blown me off. For _her._ He knew we didn't get on. He knew everything about my friends and enemies, and I knew his. But he was with her during _our_ Saturday time, sitting on _our_ bench. I felt betrayed. Suddenly I didn't want the rest of my ice lolly, and I certainly didn't want to go shopping for a notebook. I felt tears spring into my eyes, and all I wanted to do was get home before Esme or the glimmerous fop named Klavier spotted me.

Lana seemed surprised when I stormed into my bedroom upon arriving home. She was used to me and Klavier falling out - I often came home earlier than planned, ranting about how Klavier was a glimmer-boy and drove me completely mad. I didn't normally storm into my room and slam the door, flinging myself onto my bed, refusing to talk.

"Ema?" she called tentatively through the door, "Can I come in?"

I didn't answer, but Lana came into the room anyway.

"Are you ok?" She asked, sitting down on the end of my bed.

"No." I said into my pillow.

"Why not? Did you and Klavier have a falling out?" she asked, but she seemed revived I was talking, rather than giving her the silent treatment like I did so often. I didn't want to speak to my sister at all, really, but I couldn't be angry at Lana - she hadn't done anything.

I sat up. "I didn't go to the park to meet up with that fop. I texted him to ask if he'd like to go out, but he said he was busy."

"Is that why you're angry?" She asked, evidently confused.

"No. I'm angry because I saw what he was 'busy' doing. He was hanging out with Esme." Lana nodded in sympathy, but said nothing. She knew who Esme was - I ranted about her often enough. She knew that I wouldn't exactly be thrilled to see my best friend with my worst enemy.

___

The week that followed was just horrible. I tried to avoid Esme as much as humanly possible - to the extent that I took different routes around the school to get to classes if I saw her in the corridor I was about to go down. I couldn't avoid her in chemistry class, though.

I knew she was going to mention Klavier the minute I took my seat. You could just tell she was desperate to mock me.

"Hey, I met that boyfriend of yours on Saturday." She whispered as I got out my books, right on cue. "I must admit, I'm impressed. I thought you made him up."

"I don't make stuff up!" I hissed in retaliation. Lana always said the way to not let bullies under your skin is by ignoring them, and if you can't, make them think you are by keeping silent, but I'd never been good at keeping my mouth shut.

"Bit if a flirt, isn't he?" She laughed. "Strange sense of style too. Still," she continued, looking me up and down "You have one too. The perfect pair." She said mockingly.

I tried and failed to not let what she said bother me.

"Started trying to chat me up - wouldn't take 'I'm not about to date my lab partner's boyfriend' as an answer!" She chuckled when she saw the reaction she was getting from me.

"Klavier's not my boyfri-"

"Good thing too, the way he was all over me. Honestly, how does such a big ego fit into such a small brain?"

I growled. My anger started to bubble over.

"I mean, you'd think he'd drop everything and run when his friend who speaks so _highly_ of him sends a text. But he goes and replies he's _busy_. Honestly, what a cre-"

Suddenly I saw red and punched her. I didn't know what made me do it. I just lost control and slammed my fist into her nose. She yelped, and the whole class, who had been listening to our teacher, Mr. Gant (unfortunate coincidence) turned to face us. I was as shocked as them. My hand was still curled into a fist. Blood was pouring down Esme's face from her nose.

"Ema, go to the principals' office. Now!" shouted Mr. Gant.

I didn't need telling twice.

___

"Why did you do this?" Asked Lana as she drove me home. "What on _earth_ could she have said that made you thing it was acceptable to _hit her in the face_?"

"I didn't think it was acceptable. I was mad."

She sighed. "What In the name of the justice system could she have said that made you that angry?"

I muttered something, half-hoping Lana wouldn't hear.

"Ema, of course she wanted to provoke you about Klavier! This is the same girl who bullied you when I was arrested for murder! The same one who taunted you until you cracked after SL-9!" I said nothing.

"Honestly Ema, you're impossible! Do you know how embarrassing it is to have to leave in the middle of an important meeting to pick your little sister up from school because she's being sent home from punching somebody and probably _breaking their nose_?"

I still said nothing. I knew I shouldn't have done it, but I couldn't help myself - I didn't realise how protective I was of Klavier. He, for his own warped reasons, seemed to have a crush on her, and hearing her call him names and make fun of him just made me furious. More so than the two of them getting along would have.

"Sorry." I said to Lana in a small voice.

"Well," she sniffed, "It's the least you could be."

___

"Ema, text him for goodness sakes! You've been staring at that mobile for nearly half an hour! You know as well as I do that you want to go out and do your Saturday morning thing with Klavier - I don't want to have to put up with you moping around the house all day because you didn't go out!"

"I thought you said I was grounded."

"Except for visiting Klavier to make up with him - I made that quite clear."

"I don't want to go." I huffed, putting my phone on my bedside table and picking up my science magazine from where I had left it on the floor the night before.

I was sure there would be no more times of seeing Klavier. I wished I'd enjoyed the final Saturday more. I though back to the day two weeks ago dreamily. It had been like any other. We went to the new science museum to make up for him dragging me to some band rehearsal of his a few weeks previously. It had been great fun, even if her spent the time humming his latest composition, he pretended to be interested for my benefit. It had been really fun. I remembered we'd gone to a little cafe - I think it was the one in the museum entrance. I struggled to remember what we'd been talking about. It was meaningless drabble mostly. I tried my hardest to remember exact topics. There had been some kind of debate over the blue badger. I remember being surprised when he knew about it, but what were we debating about? _Think, Ema, think!_ I wanted to know everything about our final time together. Oh, yes, he had wanted to use it as his band's mascot because he thought it was so cool. I had said it was an undulating piece of plywood from the deepest realms of Gumshoe's warped imagination and should be left alone. That was it. It was a humorous debate, really.

That didn't explain why he had gone out with Esme.

I wasn't even aware I was looking for an explanation for his actions until that moment. I searched through my memory for any snide remark on my part that would have made him pick Esme to spend Saturday with instead of me.

Then I remembered.

"_You're not paying attention to what I'm saying again, fop!"_

"_Frankly, Fraulein, I find your talk of 'interesting' science-y stuff rather boring."_

"_I know what you were doing - you were watching that blonde girl over there!"_

"_Was not!"_

"_Were too! She won't date you, you know!"_

"_Course she would - I'm a rock god to be, remember? I can get any pretty Fraulein I want, thank you!"_

"_Bet'cha can't! Not every girl worships at your feet, you know. No matter how glimmerous you are!"_

He had gone up to the blonde girl and, of course, managed to get her phone number. I remembered being really annoyed.

"_So? Anybody that knows you directly or otherwise wouldn't be so easy to win over!"_

"_Like who?"_

I had given him a list of names. Pretty much every girl in my class who wasn't a total airhead. Including, of course, Esme. He claimed he was going to prove me wrong. But I'd completely forgotten until just then. It was just part of our regular wind-up routine - I didn't mean for him to take it so seriously!

It made sense now. He meant to get a date with Esme so he could prove me wrong. _Why hadn't he texted to explain, then?_ I thought bitterly. Only then did it occur to me that ignoring his calls and deleting his texts without reading them wasn't really my brightest idea. But then, I _was_ in a rage at the time.

Right on cue, my phone buzzed with a text from Klavier.

_Want 2 meet up normal spot + go 4 ice cream?_

I smiled as I answered. The "normal spot" was our bench in the park.

_k. c u there in about 10 mins_

I hit send and rushed to tell Lana I was going out to meet up with Klavier like we always did.

"I thought you didn't want to because he was a 'glimmerous fop who should be left to wallow in loneliness'?" she was reciting my words from earlier in the week.

"Lana, I would never say that - you must be mistaken!" I feigned ignorance.

She laughed. "Off you go then - be back around three, ok?"

---

"You win." Said Klavier when I reached the bench.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"I attempted to get a number of three of the girls from that list of yours. Not on would date me. They were all under the impression that I was your boyfriend, ja?" He chuckled "What _have_ you been telling your school friends about me?" he raised an eyebrow.

"You know how it is." I laughed. "friends-who-are-boys, boy-friends. The mind of the average schoolgirl just can't cope!" The useless rambling started up again. It was like I hadn't been in a state of mild depression for a week.

"Look, Ema." Said Klavier, doing that creepy thing he does when he switches from laughing to dead serious in the space of 0.4 seconds. "I'm really sorry for not seeing you last Saturday to attempt to get Esme's phone number. You looked really upset when you saw us together."

I gasped. So he knew I'd seen!

"I want you to know I didn't mean for you to be upset. And that ice cream isn't as nice when it's smeared down your front."

"Esme did that?" I gasped again.

"Ja, when I asked for her number. She's as diabolical as you said she was." I giggled. Not only because he'd admitted I was right bust he'd used a word like _diabolical_.

"Am I forgiven? Do I still get to be your guy friend?"

I pondered. Not that I needed time to think about my answer, but because I wanted to milk it for all it was worth.

"Ok, fop. You can be my friend-who's-a-boy. On two conditions. One: You need to buy me a huuuuuuge flake ice cream." He nodded obediently "Two: stop acting all flirty. I don't like people getting the impression we're in love, ok?"

"But, I really do love you, Fraulein." He said innocently.

Oh God.

That was something I hadn't bargained for.


End file.
